1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to an electronic device, and an electronic system that includes a detachable, portable electronic device and the electronic device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Widely known conventional navigation devices include small-sized portable navigation devices that are called personal navigation devices and can be carried around though their structures are simple, and vehicle-mounted navigation devices that are accommodated and secured in the concave portions (DIN openings) formed in the dashboards of vehicles. Each of the vehicle-mounted navigation devices can perform a highly precise guiding operation, with the assistance of information such as vehicle speed information supplied from the vehicle. Some of the newly suggested vehicle-mounted navigation devices are equipped with audio devices.
In recent years, navigation devices that have the portability of the portable navigation devices and the highly sophisticated guiding performance of the vehicle-mounted navigation systems have been developed.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 8-318792 (Reference 1), Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2002-328026 (Reference 2), Published Japanese Translation No. 2005-524570 of the PCT international publication for a patent application (Reference 3), and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2001-239895 (Reference 4) disclose structures each having a navigating unit that can be detached from a vehicle-mounted device mounted on a vehicle. Detached from the vehicle-mounted device, the navigating unit can be used as an independent portable navigation device.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2003-166848 (Reference 5) discloses a structure in which a navigation device can be detached from a vehicle, and can be used while the user is walking. While the navigation device is mounted in the vehicle, the navigation device operates in a car navigating mode. When detached from the vehicle, the navigation device operates in a human navigating mode.
However, any of References 1 through 5 neither discloses nor suggests a structure in which a vehicle-mounted device to which a navigating unit is to be attached has a cap unit that can tilt with respect to the vehicle-mounted device main unit.
FIG. 17 shows a conventional structure in which a front-face unit (cap unit) 802 of a vehicle-mounted device 801 to which a navigating unit 804 is to be attached is pushed forward by a slider 803 and tilts with respect to the vehicle-mounted device main unit. When the navigating unit B04 is attached to the front-face unit 802 of the vehicle-mounted device in a tilting state, excess load is put on the slider 803, and the slider 803 might be damaged. Therefore, it is necessary to prevent damage to the slider 803. Also, when the front-face unit 120 is not in a tilting state, the CD insertion/ejection slit is not exposed, and a CD cannot be inserted or ejected.
In the structure in which the front-face unit (the cap unit) 802 of the vehicle-mounted device 801 to which the navigating unit 804 is to be attached is pushed forward by the slider 803 and tilts with respect to the vehicle-mounted device main unit as shown in FIG. 17, the tilt angle of the front-face unit 802 can be adjusted by a user with the use of an operating unit (not shown), regardless of the connecting state of the navigating unit 804.
Accordingly, even if a user adjusts the tilt angle of the front-face unit 802 so as to increase the visibility of the navigating unit 804 while the navigating unit 804 is attached to the front-face unit 802, the user needs to readjust the tilt angle of the front-face unit 802 when the navigating unit 804 is put back to the front-face unit 802 after the tilt angle of the front-face unit 802 is automatically adjusted while the navigating unit 804 is detached from the front-face unit 802.
Meanwhile, there has been a demand for an increase in the visibility of the navigating unit 804 by making the tilt angle of the front-face unit 802 of the vehicle-mounted device 801 adjustable while the navigating unit 804 is attached to the front-face unit 802 of the vehicle-mounted device 801.
There has also been the problem that, even if a user adjusts the tilt angle of the front-face unit 802 so as to increase the operability of the vehicle-mounted device 801 while the navigating unit 804 is detached from the front-face unit 802, the user needs to readjust the tilt angle of the front-face unit 802 when the navigating unit 804 is detached from the front-face unit 802 after the tilt angle of the front-face unit 802 is automatically adjusted while the navigating unit 804 is attached to the front-face unit 802.